S316 Family McManus 1:00-2:15 MW 3625
SECTIONS OPEN TO UNDERGRADUATES ONLY
SECTIONS MAY NOT BE TAKEN FOR CULTURAL STUDIES CREDIT
The importance of our private families in our lives is
inescapable, so much so that we take for granted the public role
of family in society. In this course we step back and take a
look to the family as a dynamic social institution which is
shaped by economic, political and cultural forces in society.
The course is organized in three broad sections. In the first
section, we begin with an examination of the contrast between the
private and public aspects of family. We then consider major
sociological perspectives on the family and key organizing
concepts for the sociological study of the family. The second
section examines the work of families. Three topics are explored
in depth: (2) What kind of work do families do? (2) How does the
private family make decisions about the division of labor in the
household? (3) What is the social value of household production?
In the third section, we study the changing family in society.
We examine trends in family formation, divorce and remarriage.
We then consider trends in government approaches to family
policy. In order to get a better understanding of these trends
in the United States, we take a comparative perspective,
focusing in particular on comparisons with European nations.